Courtenay Harris Bond

courtenay harris bond

Courtenay Harris Bond is the staff writer covering health for PhillyVoice. She enjoys writing about behavioral health, maternal health and inequities in the healthcare system, as well as human rights and criminal justice. A veteran daily newspaper reporter, Courtenay has also written for national outlets, including KFF Health News, Undark Magazine and Filter. She was a 2018 Rosalynn Carter Fellow for Mental Health Journalism and has master's degrees from Columbia Journalism School and the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education.

courtenay@phillyvoice.com

April 29, 2025

Addiction

Philly health department is beefing up response to powerful vet tranquilizer

A report the Philadelphia health department released Tuesday broke down 2023 overdose deaths, but it didn't include data about a powerful veterinary sedative that is now complicating overdose and withdrawal.

April 25, 2025

Health Stories

A Bucks County teen received a kidney from a young New York woman. On Friday, they met for the first time

Meghan Bosack, 21, of New York, had her kidney removed to help her recover from nutcracker syndrome. She donated it to Evelyn Bautista, 17, of Bucks County, who had been on kidney dialysis. The two met for the first time Friday at Temple University Hospital.

April 23, 2025

Prevention

The ice bucket challenge is back, and this time it's raising money for mental health awareness

The Ice Bucket Challenge has been revived by a University of South Carolina student who wants to normalize conversations about mental health. The Ice Bucket Challenge went viral on social media in 2014 to raise money for ALS research.

April 23, 2025

Prevention

A bacterial toxin may be a factor in the rise in colon cancer among young people

New research suggests that a bacterial toxin caused by strains of E. coli may be partly to blame for the rise in colorectal cancer among people under 50. The toxin, called colibactin, leaves specific patterns of DNA mutations that appear in early-onset colorectal cancer.

April 22, 2025

Healthy Eating

FDA plans to ban artificial food dyes by the end of the year

The Food and Drug Administration plans to ban eight artificial food dyes by the end of the year, a move advocated by HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. The products are found in thousands of products, from cereal to candy.

April 22, 2025

Adult Health

Spring allergies are at their worst; here's how to manage symptoms

Hay fever spikes in April, but there are ways to reduce allergy symptoms. Experts recommend staying indoors when pollen counts are high, or taking medications like Zyrtec, Claritin and Allegra.

April 17, 2025

Children's Health

Why are autism rates rising? The CDC released its conclusions – and RFK Jr. immediately disputed them

New CDC data shows rising autism rates are the result of better screening and diagnosis. But HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. disputed these conclusions, instead attributing the increase to an 'environmental toxin.' Experts said his claims are not based in science.

April 17, 2025

Senior Health

To support people with dementia, IBX teams up with brain health clinic

Independence Blue Cross is offering its Medicare Advantage members with dementia access to Isaac Health a virtual clinic that provides brain health and dementia care services.

April 16, 2025

Adult Health

Technology use may help ward off cognitive decline — not expedite it

Technology use helps protect against cognitive decline and dementia, a new study finds. The research suggests fears that excessive screen time and smartphone use leads to cognitive decline are overstated.

April 16, 2025

Men's Health

Prostate cancer therapy being tested at Main Line Health may 'open up the door' to new treatments for advanced cancers

Main Line Health's Lankenau Institute of Medical Research is hosting a clinical trial that will test the effectiveness and safety of a new advanced prostate cancer drug. Researchers say the combination therapy could open the door for new approaching to treating advanced cancers.

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